My Bass Friend's Wedding
by Lil Drop Of Magic
Summary: Chuck Bass is getting married and when Blair finds out that she's not going to be the one to wear the white dress she's not too happy. She enlists Dan as a somewhat unwilling accomplice to get her man back.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the Gossip Girl world. Nor do I own the film My Best Friend's Wedding which this fic is loosely based on.

A/N The story is set in autumn 2017 and is in keeping with everything up to 4x22 EXCEPT Dan's novel and the pregnancy test found in the bin.

Chapter One

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><p>"Why can't we ever have what I want to eat in this place?" Blair frowned at the steaming risotto on her plate and poked at it with her fork. She knew that it would taste perfectly adequate – more than adequate seeing as Eric was the one who had cooked it but she'd been trying really hard to convince both Eric and Dan that their dinner that evening should consist of more wintry vegetables now that the nights were starting to get much longer and a firm chill had descended on the city.<p>

"Maybe it's because we don't have any sweet potatoes or butternut squash in the loft," Eric considered. "Or perhaps it's that Dan and I don't particularly care for those vegetables except for at Thanksgiving."

"Or, most likely," Dan entered into the conversation, "it's because, despite the amount of time you spend in 'this place', Blair, you _don't_ actually live here."

She sent Dan a withering glance but took a bite of the piping hot dish anyway. It was exquisite but she was reluctant to let the boys see this.

"And you get your way about ten times a day anyway." Eric sighed, motioning to the vintage bottle of red wine that they were drinking with their dinner. Blair couldn't understand how he could be complaining about drinking a vintage wine instead of the revolting brand beers that he and Dan had been about to consume before she'd showed them her offering.

"I think you'll find that, in fact, it's you both acknowledging my superior taste in all aspects of life," she explained, a teasing smile gracing her lips.

"Okay, I'll concede that this Italian wine is actually a better choice than the beers," Dan said, raising his glass, "if _you_ admit that Eric's risotto is better than anything we could've cooked up with your winter vegetables crap."

"We could've dined out…" Blair began and both boys rolled their eyes in exasperation. "All right, Eric, your risotto's nice."

Dan shook his head, laughing slightly in disbelief. "Gee, thanks for the glowing praise, Blair." Eric muttered. Blair felt a smile pull at her lips again and she saw no reason to stop it. This was all very familiar territory for the three of them and though (even so many years on) she was still loath to admit it; she enjoyed spending time in Brooklyn with both Dan and Eric.

Eric had moved into the loft just over two years ago when he'd graduated from Sarah Lawrence. Blair was perfectly aware that any normal person would prefer to stay in the Upper East Side compared to _Brooklyn_ but she could understand him wanting to get away from under his mother's wing and Eric had never really followed convention anyway. Eric was an interior designer, although you wouldn't know it looking around the loft because the place barely looked any different than it did when Blair first clapped eyes on it ten years ago. She nearly choked on her wine. Had it really been _ten years_ since she'd first stepped into the loft?

Dan noticed the look on her face. "What's wrong?"

Blair sighed. "I can't believe I'm going to be twenty-six in a couple of weeks' time."

"Take it from someone who's already joined the 'twenty-six' club," Dan said in a consoling voice, "it _sucks._"

Eric laughed and Blair scowled at them both.

"I _love_ that you're both two years older than me," Eric sighed. "Being twenty-four sounds so much better than twenty-six; I've still got the rest of my life ahead of me, but you two? You're past it."

"Why do we put up with him, Humphrey?" Blair asked.

"Because, unlike you, I _live here!_" Eric interrupted, laughing again.

"And he can cook," Dan pointed out, finishing off his risotto.

"So, how do you plan on celebrating being four years away from thirty?" Eric asked, taking a sip of wine.

Blair held her knife towards him. "I swear to Prada, Van der Woodsen, one more jibe like that and you'll be too dead to receive an invitation."

Eric held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, I'll leave the old jokes…for now."

Blair turned to Dan as though the threat to Eric's life had never happened. "A classic Blair Waldorf birthday party of course!"

"Oh good," Dan deadpanned, "because they always go _so _well."

"Do you remember a couple of years ago when Nate's girlfriend's dress caught fire?" Eric said laughing.

"Well, she shouldn't have stood so close to the candles with those ridiculous drooping sleeves." Blair muttered. "That was quick thinking pushing her against the ice sculpture, Humphrey, even if she ended up flying head over heels with a soaking wet dress."

"But at least she didn't end up with any burns on her arm." Dan pointed out, before finishing his wine. "What was her name again?"

"Alice?" suggested Eric.

"No, it was Amy," Blair corrected. "And she didn't last long after that, unsurprisingly."

"Where's Nate now?" Dan asked.

"Gossip Girl last picked him up in Melbourne two weeks ago." Blair replied.

"Does that guy ever stay in one place for more than a month?" Dan wondered.

"Well, when your multi-millionaire grandfather dies and your inheritance bypasses your parents and gets released unto you when you turn twenty-five, _you_ can go globe-trotting too, Dan," Eric sarcastically informed him.

"Yes, I'm waiting for that day to come any time soon." Dan nodded. "Is he coming to your birthday, Blair?"

Blair pursed her lips. "I haven't sent out any formal invitations but I suppose I can send a message his way electronically. Serena will have to get an e-vite too, seeing as she and Matthew aren't back from Singapore yet." Her tone sounded bitter and she knew it. Serena's frequent vacations (and often complete desertion of her friends and family) were a sore point with the three of them and her name instantly dampened the mood within the loft.

With the discussion of two of their absent friends, Blair knew that Dan and Eric's thoughts had turned to a third person and it wasn't Jenny Humphrey. Neither of them mentioned his name though as the discussion turned towards their plans for the evening. Blair didn't know whether she should be pleased that _his_ name hadn't been brought up or slightly exasperated. She knew that he wasn't particularly popular with either Eric or Dan but he was still one of Blair's closest friends and she did miss him. A lot.

She hadn't been paying much attention to the conversation happening in front of her and she suddenly realised with a small amount of horror that Dan and Eric were actually considering going to a new bar that had opened a couple of weeks ago.

"Van der Humphreys!" she snapped, "You know the drill on new drinking establishments."

Dan shook his head slightly. "Blair, I'm not waiting until a New York publication writes a review for the place. I honestly don't care whether they like the new bar or not – it's somewhere different and I want, no, _we_ want to try it out." Dan said, motioning to himself and Eric. "If you're worried about being seen in a bar that some critic doesn't like then don't come with us."

"But you _work_ for all these newspapers and magazines; can't you just ask someone to review it first?" Blair asked hopefully. "It'll only take a couple of days and then there won't be any problem."

Eric laughed. "He's not in charge of the papers, Blair! He does freelance work."

"I'm aware of that fact, Eric," she replied calmly. "But I think that you're both forgetting that while Dan's reputation within his workplaces may be fairly minimal, my magazine is about fashion. I can hardly go somewhere that has yet be to determined fashionable or not by those in the know."

"You're 'in the know'," Dan pointed out, with more than a hint of sarcasm. "Why don't you put a review in W about it? Then _you_ can decide its fate."

Blair pondered this. She had a piece due for her blog in the next coming days and she hadn't done a review of a new place in New York for a while now.

"Fine." She relented. "But you two are getting the drinks."

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><p>Three hours later saw them exiting the bar, Blair glaring furiously at her cell phone. "How ridiculous to house most of the establishment below street level so that there's barely any reception?"<p>

"Will you stop focusing on that one downside?" Dan implored. "You've done nothing but moan about it all evening. I thought that it was a pretty cool place on the whole."

Blair was about to make an elaborate list of all that was _not _'cool' about the establishment but her phone had rediscovered some signal and was buzzing to flag up all the calls and messages she'd received.

She cursed the bar again and dialled straight for her voicemail.

"Blair Waldorf doesn't have cell phone signal for a couple of hours and the world collapses around her," Dan muttered but Blair shushed him violently, trying to concentrate on the electronic voice.

"You have three new messages. Message One."

Blair rolled her eyes as her work colleague (she was reluctant to call her a friend seeing as she really didn't like the girl) informed her of the details of a fashion shoot that was due to take place in TriBeCa tomorrow afternoon. She mentally filed that away as Dan and Eric looked bored standing next to her.

The second message was from her boss' personal secretary, giving Blair the outline of an article that she was expected to write before the end of the week. She was so consumed with committing the details to memory and seeing what instant ideas she could create that she only half listened to the start of the third message until she realised who it was that was speaking.

"Blair, it's me. I can't believe that I don't call you for nearly a year and then when I do it goes to voicemail. Look, I'm coming back to New York tomorrow. Lily and Rufus have asked me round for dinner tomorrow night and of course they extended this invite to you too. I've been doing a lot of thinking about the future recently and there's a really important question I want to ask you. I won't say anymore now. It'll be great to catch up with you. It's been too long."

Blair stood frozen on the spot, a mixture of emotions playing across her face.

Dan looked at her in concern. "What is it?"

With trembling fingers she pressed for the message to repeat and then put the phone on speaker so that Eric and Dan could hear too.

It was obvious that they both recognised the voice too. They moved closer so that they could hear more clearly and by the time it had reached the end they were both looking at Blair searchingly.

She swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous and excited.

"I think…I think Chuck Bass is going to ask me to marry him."

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><p>AN Please let me know what you think! Thank you.

Love,

Lil Drop of Magic

xXx


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own the Gossip Girl world. Nor do I own the film My Best Friend's Wedding which this fic is loosely based on.

A/N Thanks muchly for the reviews, alerts and favourites guys! :D

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><p>Chapter Two<p>

"Don't you think you're reading a little too much into this?" Eric asked. "He just said that he wants to ask you a question and that he's been thinking about the future – he might want to propose some sort of business deal. A marriage proposal is a little far-fetched, even considering your history together."

Dan said nothing. Blair could tell that he was thinking exactly the same thing she was. She took a large breath and then explained to Eric. "When things fell through with Louis, Chuck and I made a promise…an understanding arose between us. We knew we were almost certainly destined to be with one another but we weren't ready to be together. So we agreed that if we were both still unattached by the time we were twenty-six then we would get married."

Eric raised his eyebrows in surprise. "And you turn twenty-six in two weeks' time."

Blair nodded, hardly daring to believe that this was all true.

"We can't know for sure that that's what he's talking about." Dan argued. "You made that deal six years ago and, like he said, you haven't heard from the guy in nearly a year. So, what he's going to suddenly turn up and propose?"

Blair frowned. "What are you trying to say?"

"I just don't want you to get your hopes up, that's all," he replied, making a soothing gesture with his hands.

"My hopes up? Who says I'm going to say yes?" Blair retorted, finally moving away from the spot on the sidewalk that they'd been occupying for the last few minutes. The boys hurried to catch up with her.

"Won't you?" Dan asked, not bothering to hide his surprise.

Blair sighed. "I don't _know_." And she didn't. It was all too much to take in. She needed to go home and sort out her thoughts. She walked towards the road and hailed a taxi before turning back to Eric and Dan. "I'm sorry, I've got to go."

"Blair if you want to talk to anyone about this then you know you can always come to us." Dan told her.

She smiled tightly. "Thank you, Humphrey. I suspect I'll be seeing you both tomorrow night at dinner." She bid them farewell and then climbed into the cab, her mind still reeling after the message Chuck had left on her voicemail.

She replayed the message over and over, seeing if she could detect something extra in the tone of his voice. _'I've been doing a lot of thinking about the future recently and there's a really important question I want to ask you.' _

Why couldn't he have come out and just said it? Or not mentioned it at all? That would have been much kinder than this turmoil she now found herself in.

She'd be lying if she hadn't pictured herself becoming Mrs Chuck Bass for a number of years but Chuck had been setting up business ventures around the globe for eleven months now and she'd finally gotten used to the idea of moving on with her life without him hovering in the background. And now he was back.

Of course, part of her wanted to listen to Dan, to tell herself that she was jumping to conclusions…but everything just seemed to fit.

So she was faced with the all-important question. If Chuck proposed to her would she say yes?

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><p>Dorota sighed as Blair rejected yet another outfit.<p>

"I don't understand what so important about dinner with Lily and Rufus Humphrey?" Dorota wondered and then paused. "Will Dan be there?"

Blair nodded, "Yes, and so will Chuck. Stop wasting time by talking to me, Dorota. We need to find the perfect outfit for tonight. This may well turn out to be one of the most important nights of my life!"

Dorota looked like she wanted to ask a number of other questions but she heeded her mistress' words and continued to pass out different dresses.

Blair resisted the strong urge to rub her tired eyes. She'd had very little sleep last night as she'd been thinking about the possibility of getting engaged to Chuck; both whether he would actually propose and if she'd accept him if he did. She still hadn't reached a conclusion about either problem and the speculation was driving her crazy.

She'd been below her impeccable best at the photo shoot for the magazine today and had to delegate some of her responsibilities to her subordinates so that the whole shoot wouldn't suffer.

Dan had brought her a very welcome cup of coffee at lunchtime and he'd tried to take her out for something to eat too but she'd been far too busy to give in so he'd picked something up for her. Blair could tell he'd been desperate to ask her about tonight but she was grateful that he'd managed to contain his curiosity.

Although his _constant_ goodwill would occasionally get on her nerves, Blair was happy that Humphrey was a good friend of hers. They would often joke about the animosity that existed between them in their teenage years and the banter still flew freely. Blair knew that Dan didn't take her seriously when she commented on his upbringing, residence, fashion sense (although they never really mentioned his sister) and she took a lot more teasing from Dan than she'd accept from any other person.

Blair finally found an outfit that was acceptable for this (possibly momentous) evening and started mentally preparing her accessories, hair and makeup. She glanced at the clock; she had an hour before Dan would be picking her up. She and Dorota had better get to work!

"Miss Blair, Mister Daniel is here," Dorota called to Blair an hour later. Blair gave herself one last lingering look in the mirror and she smiled, happy with her appearance, even though she could feel herself shaking with that nervous excitement again.

"Thank you, Dorota," she replied and picked up her purse before heading downstairs. "You're late, Humphrey," she called as her heels started to click on the stairs.

"By thirty seconds, Blair!" she heard his indignant reply before he came into view. "I can't control New York traffic – no one can!"

"I'm sorry, Humphrey, but that's simply not good enough." She said, shaking her head slightly. "You know I don't accept tardiness, for any reason."

"So next time I should grow some wings and fly over, should I?" he asked, flapping his arms to illustrate his point.

"I don't mind what you do as long as you get here on time," Blair said, smiling sweetly as she reached the bottom step.

He gave a short laugh and held out a hand for her. She gripped it unusually tightly due to her nerves, and then linked her arm through his. "You look beautiful, Blair," he said, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

She squeezed his arm, pleased at the compliment (even though Dan always complimented her a couple of times a day). "Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself, Humphrey."

He laughed again and she smiled, feeling the knot in her stomach relax slightly. "Are you ready?" he asked and they both knew there were two meanings to his words. There was no physical reason why she wasn't ready to leave but was she mentally ready to face this evening? The knot contracted again but she forced herself to nod.

"I'm ready."

"Daniel, Blair, it's so lovely to see you both," Lily greeted as Dan and Blair stepped out of the elevator. They had seen Lily and Rufus only four days previously at a gala and Blair found it slightly amusing that Serena and Eric's mother was greeting them as though _they_ were the ones returning after nearly a year out of the city! It didn't bother her though, especially as it was said with such warmth.

Rufus' welcome was slightly colder (to her, at least – he was very happy to see Dan, of course) but it was a far cry from the simple civility that he used to greet her with. Blair liked to think that Rufus' opinion of her had grown over the last few years and that most (if not all) of the animosity that she had shown towards his daughter had been forgiven.

They moved to the dining table, Rufus handing them glasses of wine as they walked and Blair nearly dropped hers as she spotted a dark haired man sitting with Eric. He turned his head and Blair felt the knot grow ten times heavier as Chuck smiled at her.

Yes, he actually _smiled_ at her. She honestly couldn't remember the last time that Chuck had given her a simple smile rather than a smirk. She wasn't quite sure what to make of that…

Chuck got to his feet and walked towards her. "Blair, you look absolutely radiant," he said in his typically silky manner. She felt Dan stiffen slightly next to her but then he moved away slightly so that Chuck could embrace her.

She froze, unsure how to act, but she could feel the blood rushing towards her cheeks and she cursed Chuck for making her feel and act like a teenager again. She eventually embraced him back and smiled at him when he moved away.

"Dan," he greeted, holding out his hand and Dan shook it.

"It's good to see you, Chuck," Dan said, but no one in the room believed that he meant it. Dan and Chuck had never got on and time hadn't been able to make friends of them yet.

Noticing that the atmosphere in the room had chilled slightly, Lily invited them all to sit and brought the food over.

Blair was too preoccupied with the presence of Chuck to listen too closely to the conversation – even though Chuck was doing most of the talking. He was recounting his travels from all over the business world – the cities, the luxuries and the people he'd seen. All Blair was really aware of was how often he would look or stare at her.

She couldn't put her finger on it but there was something different about Chuck from the last time she'd seen him. He wasn't normally this talkative – he liked to sit back and observe people instead of taking centre stage. He also seemed much happier, more positive and Blair tried not to tell herself that this was because he'd decided to take a step forward in his life by settling down…

"So, what was this big announcement you were planning to unveil," Lily asked, as they all finished their dessert. Blair nearly choked on her spoonful at the combination of Lily's words and Chuck's look to herself at that moment.

It couldn't be…could it? Her heart started to pound ferociously and she forced herself to ignore the sound of it rushing through her brain. He wasn't going to ask her now, was he? She still didn't know what her answer would be. It would be terrible if she had to make this decision with Lily, Rufus, Dan and Eric all watching her.

"Yes, well, as much fun as I've had having travelling around the world, I've decided that it's time for me to settle down." Blair thought that her heart was about to burst out of her chest. Didn't he think he'd better ask her before announcing their engagement to the table? She realised that Chuck was still talking and she was annoyed at herself for not paying attention. "I don't mean settle down in the literal sense, of course, but in the more traditional sense." Chuck took a moment to look round all their faces before settling once more on Blair.

"What do you mean, Charles?" Lily asked.

"I'm getting married," he replied. Blair had a sudden feeling of apprehension sneak through her body.

"Who to?" Rufus enquired.

"Her name's Liberty Blackwell."

Dan gripped her hand under the table and Blair felt her world fall apart.

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><p>AN Thank you for reading!

Love,

Lil Drop of Magic

xXx


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own the 'Gossip Girl' world.

A/N Sorry for the delay in update. Been very busy recently.

Many thanks for the reviews/alerts/favourites

Chapter 3

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><p>One sentence was thundering through Blair's thoughts; Chuck was getting married to someone else, Chuck was getting married to someone else, Chuck was getting married to someone else. Over and over again it repeated itself until she believed she'd think nothing else.<p>

Someone squeezed her hand tightly and her thought cycle was suddenly broken. She looked over to see Dan staring at her with concern and she was somehow able to become aware of what was going on at the rest of the table. Rufus and Lily were offering their congratulations to Chuck while Eric was flicking his gaze between her and his adopted brother.

Blair knew that Chuck would look over at her at any second so she quickly schooled her face into one of pleasant surprise so that he wouldn't notice the turmoil that was going on inside.

"That's wonderful, Chuck. Congratulations!" She heard herself say when his gaze turned towards her. "I'm very happy for you."

"Thank you, Blair. That means a lot to me." Chuck replied. He was looking straight into her eyes and she forced herself to look away so that he wouldn't see the truth.

"If you'd just excuse me for a moment," she said, moving her chair back and walking to the sink on the pretence of getting herself a glass of water. She breathed deeply and blinked her eyes furiously to dismiss the tears that threatened to fall.

How on _Earth_ had she been so stupid? She'd never felt like such a fool in all her life…well, maybe not her that long. Thank God only Dan and Eric knew what an idiot she'd been. She seriously wanted to crawl into one of Lily and Rufus' cupboards and never come out again. Perhaps she could sneak out…

She heard footsteps behind her and hoped that it wasn't Chuck.

It was.

"Are you all right?" he asked. She grabbed a glass and started to fill it with water.

"I'm fine," she replied coolly over the rush of water. "Couldn't be happier." He turned the faucet off and she felt herself drawn to look at him. He seemed worried and his concern made her heart ache like it hadn't done in years. "Um, wasn't there an important question that you wanted to ask me?" She said to divert the conversation.

"Yes, I was wondering, well, hoping, that you'd do me the honour of organising the wedding for us." Blair had to work very hard not to let her jaw drop open. "No one knows me better than you and I know you'd make everything perfect."

He wanted _her_ to plan _his_ wedding and she wasn't even going to get to be the bride? How dare he?

"I'd love to, Chuck," she began, not really bothering to hide the sarcasm although he didn't seem to notice, "but with my work schedule over the next few weeks I just wouldn't be able to manage it."

"I've spoken to your boss and she's agreed to give you the next few days off to help me." Chuck informed her.

"Well, unless your wedding is _in_ the next few days then that's not going to be practical to ensure that everything runs smoothly," Blair explained, somehow managing to skip over her indignation that he could just make a call to her boss and give her time off work without consulting her first.

Chuck's silence made her suspicious and she thought back to what she'd just said and then it clicked. "When are you getting married?"

"On Sunday." He replied simply.

Blair put a hand to her head in dismay. "I can't do this," she whispered.

"Yes you can, if anyone can organise the perfect wedding in four days then it's Blair Waldorf." Blair frowned slightly at his belief that she was worried that she couldn't organise a wedding in that time. Please, she could organise a wedding in forty minutes. What she _couldn't_ do was watch her soul mate get married to someone else in just _four_ days' time. It was all happening too soon. "Please, Blair. It would mean so much to me to have you so involved in my wedding."

She felt her resolve crumble. She never had been able to resist Chuck.

"I'll do it." She relented and he embraced her. His scent was so familiar and comforting and she had to resist the urge to bury her face in his designer suit.

"Charles come back! We want to hear about your new fiancée!" Lily called from the table.

Blair and Chuck moved apart and wordlessly moved back to their seats.

She sat in silence, too numb now to even think, as Chuck supplied details about his fiancée and that the wedding was due to take place that weekend. As previously stated, her name was Liberty, she came from London, was twenty-seven, had two brothers, nice parents and a $400,000,000 fortune which she had made in retail business based in the British capital.

"How long have you known her?" Rufus asked.

"I first met her about two months ago," Chuck replied and eyebrows were raised all around.

Blair was the least shocked of them all. She knew that Chuck could occasionally show his impulsive streak.

"That's…quick," Dan supplied.

"It may seem so but I don't think I've ever been happier about a decision I've made." Chuck explained and Blair winced at the simple contentment in his voice. "And no, before any of you ask, she is _not_ pregnant." There were a couple of awkward chuckles at that.

"Well, I think this deserves a toast." Rufus said raising his glass. "To Chuck and Liberty."

"Chuck and Liberty," Blair mumbled, resisting the urge to finish the rest of her wine in one go.

"She sounds lovely, Charles." Lily gushed. "When do we get to meet her?"

"Her flight gets in tomorrow morning," Chuck replied. "I'm hoping that Blair will meet her at the airport with me so that we can discuss plans straight away."

Four pairs of curious eyes turned in her direction. "I agreed to plan Chuck and Liberty's wedding," she explained although the thought of actually doing it was making her feel quite ill.

"What a splendid idea. I'm sure you'll do a marvellous job, Blair." Lily said and Blair gave her a half-hearted smile in return. She knew that Eric and Dan were both wearing concerned expressions but she couldn't think of any way to reassure them that they had nothing to worry about. "You'll have to get in contact with Serena and Nathaniel immediately, Charles. I'm sure they'll be desperate to come back to celebrate your big day."

"They're already on their way," Chuck answered. "I phoned them both this morning and they should be arriving within the next couple of days. I'm also pleased to inform you all that Nate has agreed to be my Best Man."

Blair saw that her wine glass was empty and decided that it was time to go. Plus she couldn't bear to be around Chuck's happy persona at that moment. It was all too much.

"Well, it sounds like I've got a lot of work to do before tomorrow morning." Blair announced, rising from her seat. "I'd better get going." Chuck looked disappointed but he nodded.

"I'll escort you down." He said, also rising.

"I've got an early start tomorrow too," Dan muttered. "Thanks for the lovely food, Lily."

Farewells were exchanged and Blair clutched at Eric tightly when he whispered, "I'm so sorry, Blair," into her ear. She gave him a small smile, afraid that she would fall apart should she speak.

Blair walked to the elevator accompanied by Dan and Chuck. She wished Chuck would just let Dan escort her down but she was so emotionally exhausted that she couldn't find the energy to even try to convince him.

"I'm glad that the announcement of my engagement hasn't caused you any…discomfort," Chuck said quietly to Blair, obviously trying to keep Humphrey out of the conversation.

Blair sighed. She really didn't want to have this conversation now. "Well, it's been a long time since you and I were last together. There's no reason why your getting engaged should be upsetting for me." She said stiffly, hoping that would be then end to it.

It wasn't.

"Serena's got her new beau, Nathaniel's still falling in and out of love on a biannual occasion and I'm getting married to Liberty." Chuck explained in a somewhat patronising tone of voice. "It must be hard when all your friends are finding love except yourself and your ex is engaged."

Blood boiled in Blair's body, blurring her thoughts. Chuck had some nerve…

Their conversation had obviously reached Dan as he reached out for her hand to sooth her. And then, before she knew what she was doing, she said, "Oh, didn't I tell you? I'm already engaged."

She felt Humphrey stiffen next to her and Chuck's expression grew serious. "You…you're engaged?" She nodded, smiling sweetly. "Who to?"

The elevator doors opened and Blair felt Dan try to pull his hand away but she gripped on tightly and pulled him into the elevator with her. Chuck's eyes narrowed on their joined hands. "To Dan, of course." She suddenly felt invigorated again and the adrenaline pumped through her.

"You're engaged to _Humphrey_?" Chuck asked in disbelief.

"Blair," Dan said warningly.

"I know we said we wouldn't tell anyone yet, darling," Blair explained to Dan, gazing lovingly into his eyes whilst squeezing his fingers so he wouldn't give anything away, "but love is in the air at the moment. I'm sure Chuck won't let the secret out if we don't want him to."

Chuck stared at them, seemingly unable to comprehend the sight before him. "Uh, sure." He finally said.

"Are you coming down, Chuck? There's really no need. Dan's more than capable of taking me home, aren't you, dear?" Blair cooed, leaning in to kiss his cheek.

"No, no I think you're right." He cleared his voice to get rid of the hoarseness. "I'll see you tomorrow morning, Blair. I'll pick you up around seven."

Blair smiled radiantly. "I can't wait. Goodnight."

The elevator doors closed and Dan turned towards her looking mightily confused. "Blair, what the hell are you doing?"

* * *

><p>AN Thank you for reading!

Please let me know what you think!

Love,

Lil Drop of Magic

xXxXx


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own the 'Gossip Girl' world.

A/N Thank you for all your reviews guys!

Hope you like this next chapter too. I think it's my favourite so far.

* * *

><p>Chapter 4<p>

"Blair, what the hell are you doing?" Dan tried to take his hand away again but she wouldn't let him. Now that she was out of Chuck's presence she felt herself deflating again. She'd been hiding her emotions all day and now she was utterly exhausted.

"I'm sorry, but you heard what he said. Shoving his relationship down my throat and pointing out that I'm all alone. I just wanted to wrong foot him." She sighed heavily and he pulled her into his arms. Unlike with Chuck she had no qualms about burying her face into Dan's chest. For starters, he wasn't wearing a designer suit and secondly she knew that Dan wouldn't read anything into it. The silence in the elevator and the gentle stroking of her hair finally broke her and the first tears escaped her eyes and leaked onto his clothes.

"Shhhh, it's going to be fine, Blair." Dan soothed continuing to stroke her hair.

The doors opened and Blair quickly wiped her eyes so that Vanya wouldn't see that she was upset and inform Dorota.

"Come on, there's no way I'm letting you stay on your own tonight." Dan said softly. "You're coming back to the loft with me."

Blair didn't have the energy to argue with him and if she was honest, she didn't want to be on her own either.

They nodded farewell to Vanya and Dan quickly hailed them a cab.

"Thank you for not calling me an idiot, Humphrey" Blair mumbled into Dan's shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her.

"You're not an idiot, Blair," he sighed. "The history between you and Chuck… it's complicated and none of us ever know for sure if it's definitely over between you two. This could well have been an attempt by him to rekindle your relationship." There was a pause. "Did you want him to propose to you?"

"I don't know," she answered truthfully. "I don't _think_ I wanted to become engaged to him but nor did I want him to announce his engagement to someone else."

Dan shook his head. "I can't believe he just proclaimed it like that in front of you without any warning. That guy's still a colossal ass. He knew that you'd probably be upset – he admitted as much as we were leaving, but he still went ahead with it anyway."

"Discretion's not exactly his style," Blair muttered, recalling previous new partners that Chuck hadn't exactly tried to keep private.

"And then he had the gall to ask you to organise his wedding at such short notice." Blair made a strange noise that expressed her frustration and heartache at the situation but that did not, in fact, form any words. "I'm proud of you for being the bigger person here, Waldorf. God knows how strong you're being by accepting and agreeing to all this; stronger than me at any rate."

Blair shrugged half-heartedly. "I'm sure if Serena asked you to be a part of her wedding you'd do the same thing."

Dan shifted next to her. "Yes, I suppose."

They settled into silence for a while as the lights of the city blurred past them.

"Can we still pretend to be engaged?" Blair requested hopefully. "We only have to do it in front of Chuck – he thinks we're keeping it a secret from everyone else."

"I don't think – " Dan began.

"Oh, come on, Humphrey." She wheedled. "He already thinks I'm pathetic enough for getting engaged to _you_."

"Wow, Blair you really know how to charm a guy." He murmured sarcastically.

"Imagine what he'll think if he finds out I made it all up out of desperation!" She shuddered at the thought of that complete humiliation.

Dan gave a soft groan. "All right, Waldorf, I'll save your blushes by letting Chuck think how utterly in love with me you are and how you begged me to marry you."

Blair hit him playfully on the stomach and he half wheezed, half laughed. "You wish, Humphrey."

The feeling of mirth quickly died away and Blair was quickly plunged into a depressed state once more. She was determined not to cry again though. She'd shed enough tears for Chuck Bass over the years, letting loose any more would do her no good. She would just have to get through the next four days with as minimal heartache as possible and then she'd have to try and cut Chuck out of her life for good.

They were soon back at the loft. Blair walked straight over to Dan's extensive DVD collection. It was well established that they watch a classic film when one of them was upset and needed to forget about their problems.

Dan opened a giant bag of potato chips. "I'm not eating those," Blair commented.

"Who said they were for you?" Dan replied, his mouth already full of chips.

"Eugh, Humphrey. Is that any way to behave in front of your fiancée?" Blair teased.

"Maybe you shouldn't have proposed to me then." Dan joked back. "Which Audrey film have you chosen for us to watch then, Waldorf?"

"_Rebecca_." She replied, slotting the disk into the player.

"That's not an Audrey film," he pointed out as she slotted down to sit next to him.

"How astute of you, Humphrey." She quipped.

"I hope this film doesn't serve as inspiration for you." Dan said seriously.

Blair frowned. "I'll admit that there are some _possible_ similarities between my present circumstances and the plot of the film but it's not as though I'm dead, is it? And Chuck and I were never married anyway." Dan's steady look was making her nervous. "Besides, I haven't seriously schemed for months. That's all behind me now." She turned away from him and started watching the film.

They added comments throughout like they did on most film viewings. About twenty minutes in Blair started helping herself to the potato chips.

"Apparently Olivier wanted Vivien Leigh to play the lead because they were together at the time." Blair said between chips. "He treated Fontaine dreadfully because she got the part instead and then Hitchcock noticed how upset that made her so he told Fontaine that _everyone _on the crew hated her too so that she'd play Mrs de Winter perfectly to match what she felt in real life."

"Wasn't Hitchcock a nice guy." Dan replied sarcastically.

"This is the only film of his that won a Best Picture at the Academy Awards," Blair shrugged. "And Fontaine was nominated too."

"Yeah, but she didn't win. Ginger Rogers probably deserved it anyway."

Blair couldn't hold back a scoff. "_Really_, Humphrey. Over Fontaine, Bette Davis _and_ Katherine Hepburn? I haven't watched 'Our Town' so I can't comment on Martha Scott's performance."

Dan blinked. "How do you remember all that? I can't even recall the nominees from _this_ year."

Blair smirked. "It's a gift."

About halfway through the film Eric arrived home with a quizzical expression on his face. "What did you say to Chuck just before you left?" He asked once Blair had paused _Rebecca_. "He was acting really strange for the rest of the night?"

Blair looked over at Dan. "Can we let him in?"

He sighed. "I suppose so."

"I told Chuck that Dan and I are engaged to be married." She informed Eric and he quickly subsided into laughter.

"What? That's ridiculous. I can't believe he actually believes you." Eric chuckled. "Why'd you tell him that?"

"Blair was feeling insecure." Dan deadpanned and Blair elbowed him in the ribs. "What? That's what it comes down to." He objected.

"But everyone knows you're not engaged." Eric pointed out.

"I told him that we've been keeping our relationship a secret." Blair explained, annoyed that Dan had summed up her feelings so perfectly. Surely she was allowed to feel insecure when her long time love was getting married.

"And you really think you and Dan would've been able to keep a relationship between you a secret from me?" Eric leaned over and scrounged some of the remaining chips. "You'd never have been able to do that."

Blair threw up her hands in exasperation. "Fine! I'll tell Chuck that you already know. Happy?"

"Not really. These suck," he said, throwing the chips back into bag "and Chuck's asked me to be a groomsman. Although, my woes suffer in comparison to yours, almighty wedding planner."

"Ugh, don't remind me." Blair moaned. "Besides, you should be extra nice to me – and not just because Chuck's getting married but because _as_ the almighty wedding planner I will have a very strong hand in deciding what you have to wear."

Eric paused. "Point taken. Can I just take this opportunity to say how beautiful you looked tonight and how poised and mature you appeared throughout tonight's proceedings?"

"Duly noted." Blair intoned. "Now sit down or leave, Van der Woodsen, so we can carry on watching _Rebecca._"

Eric mimed zipping his lips closed before sliding onto the coach on Blair's other side.

Blair sighed as she re-started the film. Today, in contrast to its potential to be one of the greatest days in her life, had actually turned into a complete horror of a day. But she had her boys at her side, a classic film showing and the prospect of this being only a short prolonged agony (if that even made sense).

She'd get through this.

* * *

><p>The noise of her cell phone vibrating woke her from her slumber. She swept her hands underneath the pillow until they closed around the buzzing object and she brought it to her ear, eyes still closed.<p>

"Hello?" she mumbled.

"Blair? Where are you?"

Blair's eyes snapped open.

"Chuck?"

"Blair, I'm here to pick you up and take you to the airport."

She groaned and looked at the clock on Dan's bedroom wall. It was seven fifteen. "I'm sorry, Chuck. I'm in Brooklyn."

"Brooklyn?"

"I'm at Dan's." She explained.

There was a pause. "I see." Another pause and Blair realised what Chuck must have thought she was _doing_ spending the night at the loft. "Will you be ready by the time I get there? Do you need me to bring a change of clothes over for you?"

"No, there's no need. I'll be ready. I always leave a couple of outfits here. It makes sense considering how often I stay over." This was perfectly true – she did stay at the loft every now and then but it was purely platonic, Dan would always sleep on the couch. But she _wished _she could see Chuck's face as he digested these words.

"I'll be there soon." He eventually ground out before hanging up.

Despite her overall bad mood, Blair laughed to herself for a couple of seconds before realising how tired she was.

She hid herself under Dan's duvet. She liked Humphrey's bed. It was so soft and comforting. Her bed was lovely too of course – but the silk sometimes felt cold and slippery against her skin. Being in his bed was how she imagined lying in a fluffy cloud should be (without the fact that she'd fall straight through and be instantly soaked).

She closed her eyes and indulged her tiredness for a while. She blamed Dan and Eric of course, because after they finished watching _Rebecca_ they had made a joke plan of Chuck and Liberty's wedding. They made a dining menu of all the food that Chuck hated, Blair made quick sketches of the different outfits to be worn by the bride, groom and attendants. Eric cried out in horror at the lurid neon pink, beige and orange suit she'd designed for him. Dan made a mock-best man's speech highlighting the very worst of Chuck Bass and he did it in such a humorous fashion that Eric and Blair had been breathless with laughter.

But now the real wedding planning had to begin. She emerged from her duvet hideaway and opened Dan's wardrobe to look at the clothes she had available. Finding something suitable she laid it on the bed before making her way quietly to the bathroom so as not to wake Dan and Eric.

However, when she emerged she discovered Dan waiting for her holding a mug of coffee. She took it gratefully – Dan's coffee never failed to disappoint. "Chuck's on his way." She muttered, taking a quick sip.

"You got everything you need?" She nodded. "I'm gonna go out and get some fruit for a salad."

She frowned. "You hate fruit salad for breakfast."

"It's not really for me." Dan explained.

Blair smiled. "Thank you. That would be nice."

In the end it turned out that Blair was only able to have a few spoonfuls of fruit before there was an insistent banging on the door.

"Good morning, Chuck," Dan greeted as he opened the door. "Can I interest you in some coffee or food?" It was blatantly obvious to everyone that this was only a courtesy – Dan didn't want to serve Chuck and Chuck didn't want to stay.

"No thank you, Humphrey. I need to be on my way to pick up my fiancée."

"Sorry about this morning," Blair offered half-heartedly.

"Lucky for you Liberty's arriving at JFK, not Newark. So stopping here hasn't delayed us too much." Chuck drawled.

"What? She hasn't got her own private jet?" Dan joked.

"We're coming back to the city via helicopter." Chuck elaborated.

Dan paused. "Oh."

"As hard as it is to tear myself away from your stimulating company, Humphrey, I don't want to be late. Are you ready Blair?"

She nodded and hopped down from her bar stool. "I'll see you later, Humphrey." She was so used to calling him by his surname that she only realised afterwards she'd said it that it was slightly strange to call her fiancé that. To recover this error she walked over to Dan and kissed him on the lips. Luckily he wasn't too shocked to respond to the small kiss.

"Have fun, Blair-bear." Dan called to her as the door closed behind her.

"Isn't that what your father used to call you?" Chuck asked.

"Mmm-hmm." Blair replied blushing, because that was more than a little bit weird. She was going to have to have a serious word with Dan about acceptable terms of endearment when she next saw him.

* * *

><p>AN Thank you for reading. Reviews are very much appreciated

Love,

Lil Drop of Magic

xXxXx


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